AWA Should Stand for Awesome Weekend in Atlanta

Okay. So this is a little late. WE KNOW. We humbly ask for you to forgive our lateness. We promise to be more prompt in the future.

Anyways, as the title proclaims, AWA XIV was great. We keep forgetting how exciting it is to see thousands of people show up who love Japanese culture (specifically anime, gaming, and fashion). We all had a blast cosplaying, buying stuff, hanging out, and just being ourselves. To explain how things went overall for us, here's Shava!

Thanks, but STOP CALLING ME SHAVA!

Here's Friday!: We (Raven, Nyx, Tesbin, Tim, and I) arrived at the con around 2 pm after getting a little lost (Tim, you suck!). We managed to all get our badges after some wrangling. Raven and Nyx had to stand in the epically long pre-reg (pre registration) line, while Tim, Tesbin, and I just did the walk-in, which was a breeze. After meeting up with Tesa, we scanned the dealer's room. It was as epic as usual. Then, we had to go back to check in at our hotel, the Wingate Galleria. After checking in (and realizing that the jacuzzi was NOT in our room), we went back and hung around. Around 5:45 (we minus Tim plus Tesa), we had dinner at some fancy Italian place. Everyone looked at us all funny because we were in our cosplays. We had a blast at dinner, and our waitress was really nice. Later that night, Raven and I did the Cha Cha Slide with these Akatsuki cosplayers. We got back to our hotel, jumped in the jacuzzi. After a mini blowup, Kichiro and Matt FINALLY showed up. After that, I passed out in exhaustion.
Cut to Saturday: That morning, I sent Kichiro downstairs for some breakfast. He returned with enough food for the six of us (Me, him, Raven, Tesbin, Nyx, Matt). After an epic throwdown, Raven and I got dressed in our Walolitas. We set off of the con, again. Spent some time there doing random stuff and we returned to changed. I got into my Yuna songstress cosplay and Raven did her SnJ Gaara. We journeyed to this great Chinese buffet. After a long nap, Raven went to some pajama party thing, and Tesbin, Nyx, and I sat in on a coolio panel. Then we raved a bit at the rave. Went back to the hotel and talked with some fellow con-goers until 4am
Sunday...the End :( :We all got up, packed, and said our goodbyes to Kichi and Matt. Went back to the dealers room and got some final goodies. Then I said goodbye to the rest of We (Raven, Nyx, and Tesbin) and left for Athens. Then We did some stuff and left for Augusta.


Yay! So overall, AWA was great. We'll be back next year (Sept 18-21)! Next up on the calendar is this weekend's Japan Fest at the Gwinnett Civic Center! Make sure you go. It'll be great.

Happenings in September

Hello and welcome to the magnificence of our blog. We will try our best to get out all the info you could ever possibly need to keep up with Japanese culture that is present in the great state of Georgia. There are a lot of festivals, concerts, conventions, and other opportunities to delve into the greatness that is Japan.


Here's what's happening in the month of September!


Dragon*Con (Atlanta, GA): August 29-September 1
Hyatt Regency Atlanta, Atlanta Marriott Marquis, and the Atlanta Hilton.
If you didn't know, Dragon*Con (the largest sci-fi/gaming/etc. convention in the country) starts tomorrow. We realize that tomorrow is technically August, but just for the sake of it's awesomeness, Dragon*Con will count as a September event. Good luck getting tickets (memberships in con speak) because if you didn't plan ahead, memberships START at $50 for just Sunday and Monday. It'll be sick no doubt, but sadly enough, none of the Musketeers can make it this year. Guests will include Kevin J. Anderson, Sean Astin, Linda Blair, Laurell K. Hamilton, George Takei, Alan Tudyk, and many others. If you can make it, go! Saturday will include the annual parade down Peachtree St downtown, which always amazing to see. For more info, go to the official site, http://www.dragoncon.org/


Movies with a Mission Screening: "Our Pride - The Spirits of Black Japanese in Georgia" (Atlanta, GA): Sept 4, 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
The APEX Museum, Trolley Theater, 135 Auburn Avenue
Movies with a Mission is a FREE program that SankofaSpirit runs in the Atlanta and Chicago areas. The films that they show serve to counter the myths about Africans and people of African descent so often promoted in popular culture. This month's movie is about the experience of individuals in Georgia of Black and Japanese descent and how the lives are shaped by their dual ethic backgrounds. SankofaSpirit has yet to disappointment me, so it will be a great experience. For more info, go to their site, http://www.sankofaspirit.com/. If you have specific questions, email info@sankofaspirit.com.


Anime Weekend Atlanta 14 (Atlanta, Ga): Sept 19-21
Renaissance Waverly Hotel, 2450 Galleria Parkway
The largest anime convention in Georgia and one of the most popular in the US, Anime Weekend Atlanta (referred to as AWA for the duration of this blurb) is in its fourteenth year of greatness. All things anime, manga, and Japanese pop culture related are showcased here. There'll be cosplay, gaming, artwork, concerts, panels and wondrous dealer's room. If you like anything akin in anyway to current Japanese culture, it will be there. Come out and enjoy the magic of people dressed up as fictional characters from popular (and not so popular) anime, manga, games, and fashion. The Musketeers will be there too! For more info, go to http://www.awa-con.com/. Get your tickets soon!


JapanFest (Duluth): Sept 27-28 10:00 am – 6:00 pm Saturday; 10:00 am – 5:00 pm Sunday
$8 All-day admission; children 6 and under free; free parking
Gwinnett Center Convention Center, 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway
JapanFest is one of the largest festivals in the country that focuses on Japanese Culture. One this year's highlights is the millennium celebration of the Tale of Genji. It will feature taiko drumming, concerts and dancing, concerts & dance performances, martial arts demonstrations, cultural workshops, children’s games, Japanese food & beer garden, bonsai trees, and contemporary folk music. Tickets are cheap, or even free if you volunteer or go to a school that has Japanese classes. Go to http://www.japanfest.org/ for all the info.

And that's September for ya! It's got something special for every week of the month!